But forecasters said the system, which is also allowing isolated late afternoon thunderstorms to form, would still ladle out temperatures in the middle to high 90s possibly through the weekend.

The temperature at Orlando International Airport couldn't get past 95 degrees, the first time in four days that heat records for the date had not been tied or set.

The highs since Sunday had been 97 to 100. The highest reading recorded at the jetport during all of 1984 was 94 degrees, reached several times.

Tampa posted a steaming 99 degrees Wednesday, the hottest for that city since record-keeping began 95 years ago. The old mark was 98.

Pensacola managed 96 degrees, breaking a 94-year-old record for the date of 94. Other record-setters included Key West, 93, breaking the 92 of 1950; and Fort Myers, 98, breaking the 97 of 1981.

Other high readings were 99 at DeLand, 102 at Haines City, 100 at Leesburg, 100 at Gainesville, and 98 at St. Cloud.

In Brooksville the Southwest Florida Water Management District extended mandatory water use restrictions to all of its area Wednesday as the heat and drought tightened their grip.

Restricted use was ordered for the eastern fourth of Levy County, the western fourth of Marion County, the southern tenth of Lake County, the western two-thirds of Polk County, the central fourth of Highlands County, including Sebring and Lake Placid, and all of Citrus, Hernando and Sumter counties.

Mandatory restrictions were ordered Feb. 11 for Hardee, Desoto, Charlotte, Sarasota and Manatee counties, and for Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties April 8.

The restrictions allow sprinkling of lawns and washing of cars and other non-essential use of water on an odd-even arrangement based on addresses.

A person living in an even-numbered house can water on even-numbered days, but only between midnight and 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. and midnight. Those at odd-numbered addresses can water on odd-numbered days.

The forecast for Central Florida today through Sunday calls for highs in the middle to upper 90s and lows near 75, with a slight chance of late afternoon thunderstorms.

For Florida next week the official outlook is hotter and drier than normal. The National Weather Service said sea breezes should help cool eastern areas and isolated showers will help some areas of the interior, "but overall very hot weather will continue."

For what it's worth, it may not get any hotter.

"I imagine it's close to its physical limit for this time of year," said Miami forecaster Alan Cummings. "Presumably it can't get much hotter because it never has."

But relief may be on the northern horizon.

"Believe it or not, we do see some light at the end of the tunnel," said forecaster John Laing of the National Weather Service in Atlanta. He said a cooling trend for Georgia and Alabama "looks much more promising for the weekend" than it had appeared Tuesday.

The high pressure system was showing signs it may weaken by the weekend, he said.

If the high pressure moves as expected, a "noticeable and significant" cooling of 8 to 10 degrees would be felt in Georgia and Alabama, although Florida may have to wait until next week for relief, he said.

In Florida a heat alert remained in effect for the entire state except for the east coast from Daytona Beach southward. Two deaths in Jacksonville have been linked to the heat.

Dr. Barry Beck, director of the Florida Sinkhole Research Institute at the University of Central Florida, said heavy pumping from underground water supplies does not appear to have produced an unusual number of sinkholes this year.

But he said the drawdown of the water table appears to be responsible for the small sinkhole that damaged part of Cypress Gardens' Gardens Plaza Restaurant this week.

It was the second time in four years a sinkhole forced the restaurant to close.

The lack of rain has dried up fish-filled ponds at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary near Naples, forcing many wood storks to abandon their young. Biologist Rick Bantz said only about 500 young wood storks have survived this year's nesting season.

"Wading birds are going through some very lean times right now because it's been a very long dry season," Bantz said. "This year was definitely one of the worst."

Psychologists at a University of Florida clinic said some of their clients were having trouble coping with heat-induced "irritability, frustration and lack of control." And the Alachua County Crisis Center said the weather was a major factor in a dramatic increase in calls for help.

Officials of the Crisis Intervention Center in Orlando, however, said they couldn't say that the heat was making any difference.

It was with chickens in Florida, Georgia and Alabama, more than a half- million of which have perished in the three states during the hot spell.

Construction workers at an office building in Greenville, S.C., went to work at 6 a.m. Wednesday, an hour early, so they could get off the roof earlier than usual. Metal on the building is "like a mirror throwing heat back at you," said site foreman Stan Cooley.

Rising temperatures forced several school systems in North Carolina to close early Wednesday. Mississippi officials cut back school hours in three cities Tuesday.

Officials appealed for limits on water use in Dothan, Ala., after high consumption in temperatures up to 101 drained the city's reserves. "If we had an industrial fire, we'd be in deep trouble," said Fire Chief Ray Barnes.

Not everything in the South was hot and dry.

Hail the size of softballs pelted areas of middle Tennessee late Tuesday, damaging homes and cars and ruining crops, and a tornado was reported to have skipped across Wilson County, west of Nashville.